FBI considers putting some of those who attacked the Capitol on no-fly list
Jan 12, 2021, 3:35 PM
Supporters of US President Donald Trump protest outside the US Capitol on January 6, 2021, in Washington, DC. Demonstrators breeched security and entered the Capitol as Congress debated the a 2020 presidential election Electoral Vote Certification. Some Democrats and Republicans see that day very differently. (Photo by ALEX EDELMAN / AFP) (Photo by ALEX EDELMAN/AFP via Getty Images)
(Photo by ALEX EDELMAN/AFP via Getty Images)
WASHINGTON (CNN) — The FBI has publicly acknowledged for the first time that it is considering keeping those who attacked the US Capitol last week from boarding planes by adding them to the federal no-fly list.
FBI Washington Field Office Assistant Director in Charge Steven D’Antuono said Tuesday that the bureau would consider adding rioters to the no-fly list, which is administered by the Transportation Security Administration.
“As for the no-fly list, we look at all tools and techniques that we possibly can use within the FBI and that’s something we are actively looking at,” D’Antuono said in response to a question from CNN’s Evan Pérez.
On Tuesday, congressional leaders intensified calls to keep rioters off planes after they said they remained mostly in the dark from the agencies that oversee the list.
“We cannot allow these same insurrectionists to get on a plane and cause more violence, and more damage,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said during a Tuesday afternoon news conference.
The top Democrat and Republican on the House Homeland Security Committee also told TSA Administrator David Pekoske in a letter they were concerned “little is being done to disrupt the travel of terrorists who just attacked the seat of the U.S. Government and wish to do so again.”
House Homeland Security Chairman Bennie Thompson, a Democrat, and ranking Republican member John Katko wrote they were concerned that many of the same groups that planned and carried out Wednesday’s attack intend to return to Washington, DC, to cause further disruption and violence in the coming days, including at the inauguration of President-elect Joe Biden.
The no-fly list is derived out of the Terrorist Screening Database kept by the FBI. Much of how it works, including what qualifies a person for inclusion, is classified.
The FBI and other intelligence services can nominate individuals for the list or the selectee list, which designates an individual as the subject of additional security screening at the airport.
When a person checks in for a flight, his or her reservation information is checked against the TSA’s Secure Flight database, which includes determining whether the traveler is on the no-fly list or selectee list.
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